Renault seeking up to €5bn in state-backed loans

French car giant Renault is seeking billions in state-backed loans as it tries to weather the coronavirus crisis.

The company is also cancelling its dividend for 2019 and its chairman is taking a pay cut.

Jean-Dominique Senard’s salary will be cut by 25% for the second quarter of 2020.

However, interviewed on RTL radio on Friday, he declined to say how much in monetary terms the cut would cost him.

In the current context & in a spirit of responsibility towards all of the Group’s stakeholders, our Board decided to no longer propose the distribution of a dividend at the General Meeting. All the members of the Board will also reduce their compensation: https://t.co/JCthEqkd8fpic.twitter.com/dh5SajpE8b

The company will cancel €300m worth of dividends that had been intended to be paid to shareholders for last year.

Mr Senard said Renault is not seeking to be nationalised but is working to secure state-backed bank loans to cushion the shock of the Covid-19 crisis that has slashed demand for vehicles and shut down production.

He said the loan amounts have not been fixed but could be as much as €5bn.

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